I sooo love classy dresses like this...

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....pretty shoes...they make me smile..

 

Just My Opinion

So...I was watching the news a few days ago, and I came across this story about the Florida pastor who was planning to burn Korans on September 11th. Here's an article about it.


http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/09/09/florida.quran.burning/index.html?hpt=T2


You know....I'm not going to say a whole lot about this article, but I will say that I found it disturbing. I, myself, am a Christian. I do not understand how burning Korans benefits the Kingdom of God. In my opinion, our focus should be on winning souls for Christ. The things that we do should be done with the love of Christ. I'm not saying that we should endorse other beliefs. I am just trying to figure how we would benefit from burning something that has absolutely nothing to do with our cause. We need to be praying. We need to be studying...and we need to be ministering. Then, and only then, will our message truly be clear.


As for other beliefs, there will come a day when the truth will be what is it. It is written clear as day in The Bible "Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (2 Philippians 2:9-11 NLV)


On that day, no other god will stand before Christ! Until then, we need to be focused on HIM not burning Korans.

So what do I rate this one?

On a scale of 1-10, what exactly would I rate Eric Jerome Dickey's Tempted By Trouble? Hmmmmm....well, while I was reading the book, I felt like it was quite interesting. I really like how Dickey relates his books to what is going on in America at the present moment. All of his books are relevant for the time, and there is usually some realistic current event mentioned in the book. Tempted By Trouble really showed how money can affect marriage and other relationships, and it also showed how this current economic situation can drive people to do very desperate things. That aspect of the story kept me reading. I wanted to know how the main character was going to get back on his feet.


Let's just say the book had me pretty close to halfway on edge until I got to the 90% mark (kindle). This is when disappointment began. I don't know if EJDicky couldn't decide on which way he wanted to end the book, but there was just too much back and forth.  I honestly think he could've cut at least 10 pages at the end and quit it with the flashbacks. When I read the last sentence of the book, I actually turned my face up. Disappointment. I don't feel like it's the worst book that he's ever written, but I do feel like he is so much better than Tempted by Trouble.


What I will say is this: Eric Jerome Dickey's writing is very intelligent. No matter what the subject is, I never feel like I'm getting dumber while reading his books. He definitely challenges my vocabulary, and I like that.


So....weighing the positive with the big negative, I give the book a 6.5. Eh.

I have made a change on my book list. Instead of reading The Pact by Jodi Picoult, I have recently took interest in a book called The Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez. After looking the book up, it seemed like it would be in the category with The Help by Kathryn Stockett. Hopefully, this one won't disappoint. I'll let you know.  ;-)

Thoughts

The desert has a way of allowing me a lot of time to reflect on a lot of things. This morning I got up, and I was a little disgruntled about some things. I wouldn't say I was in a bad mood....just a bit disappointed with people. Then, on the walk home from work, I started thinking that the desert can be compared to prison in some ways. It's not that you're on lock down; you still have freedom. You can't, however, buy a ticket home just because you're home sick or to remind people that you still exist. When it comes to most people back home, it's like you're "out of sight, out of mind." While I was thinking that, I wondered if people in prison feel the exact same way....almost forgotten about. I understand how it happens. I don't think anyone who is away ever expects people to drop their whole life and constantly think of the person who is away. I think it's just kind of shocking how quickly people go on with their lives. But really, what can you expect? Nothing has changed in their lives. The only thing that is different is your presence, which come to find out might not be that big of a deal. In fact, without your presence life can and does go on. People may miss you at first, but they get over it. Soon people get distracted by their everyday activities, and I've found that you (the person away) have to find your own temporary life to keep you distracted from loneliness.


When I first got here, I found myself rushing to my computer after work to check and see who I heard from. I stayed up late trying to make sure I was up when everyone on the other side of the world was up. Then, I realized it's just not practical for me. I am working long hours. I need my rest. I haven't had a day off, and really I have a life to live over here. People aren't losing sleep to talk to me, so I need to take care of me first over here.


I think what always hurts the most is the ache that you feel from missing people who have other things to think about besides you.


BUT this is not meant to be a sad message. It's just some of the thoughts that go on in the mind of Kish. These are the times where I am especially glad that I have Jesus. He makes everything ok, and I always can rest assured that I am on his mind no matter where I go.

..I would rock every pair....

Here's what I thought...

So I finished 32 Candles today. How was it? You know how I said I was super excited to read it? We-lllllll (in my Antoine Dodson voice) that excitement died down...and then it came back to life....and then it went away....and then I was like ok, let's just finish this book. I won't sit here and say the book wasn't good. It's just I don't really know if it was good either. What was it? I guess it was interesting and entertaining. I think what really kept me going is finding out if she was going to get her happy ending. After reading the book, I need to watch 16 Candles because there were just so many references to the film.


In my opinion, 32 Candles was about a girl who was perceived as an ugly duckling who against all odds, becomes more than anybody ever thought she would. After each chapter, I was left wondering "ok, is this going to lead to her happiness?" I think there was a whole segment of the book that was super ridiculous. I had a hard time believing some things could actually happen, but I guess anything can happen in a book.

Another thing that I had a problem with is that she had a negative nickname that she actually answered to. Who does that?!


On a scale of 1-10, I think I would give this book a solid 7. Not so bad, but not excellent. I am still undecided on recommending it.....sorry. *shrugging*

My next book on the deployment list is Tempted by Trouble. I have been an Eric Jerome Dickey fan for at least a decade. Although I haven't been super happy with the direction of some of his novels, the books I do like....I really like. I think this one will be a good one. I'll let you know what I think :-)

The next few books on my list are:
The Pact by Jodi Picoult
Getting to Happy by Terry McMillian
Evil Without a Face by Jordan Dane
In My Father's House by E. Lynn Harris
Going Buck Wild by Nina Fox
Holly Rollers by ReShonda Tate Billingsley
Moth to a Flame by Ashley Antoinette
Sunday Morning Wife by Pamela D. Rice
One For the Money by Janet Evanovich
Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
Sugar by Bernice McFadden


...and I plan to read more out here.

A Journey

I am getting ready to go on my third deployment in six years, and all I can think about is the fact that I am leaving my husband. This past Sunday, it really hit me hard. I walked into the house, and I felt my whole mood change. Then, I cried....and cried...and cried, and I almost feel like crying now. lol. I shared with my husband as well as my best friend that this time it is different. Every time I have been deployed, I have had my husband with me. I have been fortunate. No matter what I was going through at work, and no matter how much I missed home...I had him there. He was my piece of happiness. He was my piece of home away from home. He represented the people who TRULY love me. My smile always meant so much more when he was around. I don't want to leave my home. I don't want to leave him, but I know I have to go.

I go into this trip knowing that God has a plan for me. Before it was meant for us to be together. When we were in Iraq together, I think it sealed the deal on us deciding to get married. I remember noticing our relationship grow so much while we were there. I knew there was a purpose for us being together there.

This last trip, I feel like we were there to support each other. We both had to deal with so many situations at work that is was a relief to see each other on our days off. We were each other's encouragement.

I am thinking that God is going to use this time to really work on us individually. I think the road will be hard, but I know we can handle it. I am anxious to see what God will have for us at the end of the journey. Although I don't want to leave my home, I know it is necessary for whatever God has planned.

I just don't know what to do with it

I kind of find Kanye West entertaining, but when I saw this litte video I just wanted to know what EXACTLY goes on in the mind of Kanye? I know this is called a "90 second moving painting" but what is really going on in the video? I like to be entertained by entertainers, but I just don't appreciate being creeped out by "thriller" eyes and such. I almost thought that the child from the Exocist was going to jump out somewhere on here. I'm hoping that one of these days Kanye will return from this dark place and be halfway happy again. I just feel like the world is getting closer and closer to the end. Seems like people embrace the dark so much right now.

Closer than a Brother

Are you willing to be friends when it's not fun? Are you willing to do friendship even when it's hard or inconvienient? Can you be friends with someone when they need you for more than a good laugh or familiar conversation? Can you be a friend when someone needs you to encourage them in their situation? Can you be friends with someone after they have held you accountable for your actions? Can you be friends when your friend tells you the truth about yourself? Can you be a true friend when your friend's flaws are exposed? Can you really be a friend? These are the questions I ask myself when I consider someone as a friend. Proverbs 18:24 says "There are 'friends' who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother." Which type of friend am I?

I feel like "friend" is a word that is used entirely too loosely. I have always been picky about the people that I choose to call friends. Sometimes I feel like I can be too picky, but once I read Proverbs 18:24 I realized that friendship really should not be taken lightly. To have a good friend is a gift, and to be a great friend is commendable. I have a few friends in my life who have proven themselves as great friends. My great friends recognize when my laugh is covering the pain, and they pray for me when I am not smart enough to hang up the phone and pray for myself. My great friends never make me apologize for who I am, but they still hold me accountable to the morals that I claim. My great friends also know that any expectation I have of them, I am willing to do myself.

What does it really mean to be closer than a brother? I truly think it means to be dependable. When I think of my family, I always think that it's a no matter what situation. No matter if I am mad at my sister or not, at the the end of the day she's still my sister. This means if she needs me, I am there. This means no matter what the situation is that made us ill with each, we must find a way to forgive and move on. Yes, I am aware of her flaws, but I still have to love her and push her to be better. I really think that's how friendship should work. A lot of times, I think people feel like a friend is not blood. Since they aren't blood, there is no need to invest anything in them if they do something we don't like or if they require too much of our time. Being closer than a brother seems like it means going that extra mile for people you call a true friend. Is it always easy? No....but it's love. I feel like that's mainly what Proverbs 18:24 is saying. A friend loves you like kin. When friendship is thought of in that sense, is it a word that we should really throw around?

...Shoe Alert...

Perfection

The Beauty in it all

"You're pretty for a dark-skinned chick." Do you know how many times I heard that or things similiar? In fact, I vividly remember being at a track meet, and a certain dude said to me "You and Shamica are the prettiest dark-skinned girls I have seen." Those type of compliments always made me cock my head to the side and nod. Can a dark-skinned girl just be pretty? Is that something that is really all that rare? Does she have to be put into a category? I never heard a person say "She's pretty...for a light-skinned chick."
All my life, people NEVER let me forget my complexion. When I was growing up, a lot of people acted like it was a flaw. I was constantly made fun of until I was in the 7th grade. When the jokes stopped, then the half-compliments began.

The thing is, for as long as I remember I embraced my dark skin. I was never ashamed of it. When I looked in the mirror, I didn't have a "Precious" moment where I wanted to be lighter. In fact, my father drilled into me that black was beautiful. I was always extremely annoyed with other people who had such a big problem with my skin. I always wondered why a lighter complexion somehow meant girls were prettier. I often wondered if I was the only person who noticed that there were ugly light-skinned chicks....mop-head brown chicks....and ugly dark-skin chicks as well. Ugly holds no color, and beauty is not limited to a certain complexion.

Now that I am older, it's like the one thing that everyone looked as a flaw is what people like about me. I hear so often "you have some of the prettiest black skin." It's is kind of ironic. The other thing that caught me by surprise in conversation one day with someone who is very light-skinned, was that she also has had issues with her skin. She thought she was too pale. It made me wonder when we will ever stop this nonsense and accept our beauty for what it is.

When will Black beauty be looked at as the same as Caramel beauty? When will Black beauty be seen on the same level as "Red bone" beauty? When will beauty just be what it is?

"Cora had caramel-tinted skin--not light enough to be called yellow, not dark enough to be called plain. She was just right..." <--this came from an exerpt in 32 Candles by Ernessa T. Carter. When I read that statement, I thought to myself "this is never going to end." It is the same with hair. I have been thinking about going natural. I was told that my hair is "a little thick" to be thinking about that. Aren't afros thick? Does my hair HAVE to be wavy to be seen as pretty? Did anyone else see the movie Good Hair besides me??? I actually LIKE the fact that my hair is thick. Yea, I need a relaxer like every five weeks if I'm pushing it. So what. It may be nappy, but it's mine. lol....and I like to think it's beautiful.

I kind of feel like we put too many stipulations on beauty. Every shade of our race is just plain gorgeous to me. It is like it's a requirement to have certain characteristics to be seen as the popular beauty. Can't different just be beautiful?

Always some crazy MESS going on....

So this weekend I was chatting it up with the fam, and we started talking about the crazy stuff that is going on in the media. Well, the subject of Dr. Laura Schlessinger came up. I had heard nothing about it, and I didn't really care. People are always talking wreckless. Just look at Mel Gipson. *shrugging* Then, while we were surfing the Internet for something else, we stumbled across the recording of Dr. Laura that had so many people in an uproar. I fully understand why people reacted the way they did. So....I decided to share. All I can say is that there are so many people that have a forum to say some of the most ridiculous things. What baffled me the most was that she never let her caller finish anything she was saying. Then, when the caller started cutting her off, she had the audacity to get mad. This was one of those recordings that really made me shake my head. What exactly is hyper sensitive in this case?

....oh, how I love a good book....

I have ALWAYS enjoyed books since I was a little girl reading Green Eggs & Ham. lol. Since I'm getting ready to go back to the desert, I know I'll be reading a ridiculous amount of books. I love to get lost in a good book, and I am always willing to share something that I feel is worth reading. Two books I always recommend are Chasing Destiny by Eric Jerome Dickey (a twisted story and definite page turner) and MY FAVORITE book....dun DUN dunnnnn...White Lines by Tracy Brown. If I recommend this book to you, and you don't run and get it...I will SEND it to you. lol. Ask about me.

Most recently, I finished a book called My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult. It's a very well-written story about a sister who was brought into this world for the sole purpose of being her older sister's donor. After reading this book, I am now a fan of Jodi Picoult's work. I have added a few more of her books to the list of novels I plan to read in the desert.
I just bought about a dozen books (which won't be enough) to take with me on my trip. One of the books that I am very excited about reading is 32 Candles by Enessa T. Carter. I read the first few pages just to get an idea, and I feel already that this book is going to be a definite recommendation! I hope it doesn't disappoint me. I will keep you posted. Check out the cover. I absolutely love it!

Hot Shoe Check

If you know me, you know I have a great affection for a hot shoes. Shoes, shoes, and more PRETTY shoes. I can never get enough of looking at them! I love to wear them (even when they hurt), and I love to share them (not literally...more like online..lol). I would build and own a mall that had nothing but shoe stores if I could. I would have my own shoe line/store if I had the funds. Since I have neither, I figure I'll just share my love of shoes with YOU....often. ;-) Enjoy! I know I will....

Now you know I had to indulge in a few of these right??? The tan and red flower pumps are a perfect work of art to me.

:-)

Well, I'm finally starting my blog! Hip hip...hooray!! lol. I have been saying for months and months that I am going to blog, and I was finally pressured into a deadline. I figure there are a lot of topics that I have an opinion on, and I would like to share my thoughts. So enjoy!